Total Refinement at Isaac Mizrahi.

Now these just make me sad that Isaac is parting ways with Target, leaving us with no hope of a trickle-down effect...



Also, semi-related, if you've never seen Unzipped, the 1995 documentary about Isaac and his process, you should Netflix or your-preferred-method-of-DVD-rental it immediately because it is not only a fantastic view behind the scenes of the fashion world, it is also hilarious.

Victoria Beckham is lovely and ever so ladylike...

...I just wonder how Roland Mouret feels, having been so blatantly ripped off.

Pseudo-Goth at Rock and Republic.

I realize that it's a bit odd for someone who cultivates a classic look to have a a secret affinity for many things goth (well, goth-lite), but I can't seem to help it, and I don't even have a good excuse. Black on black on black, leather and lace, heavy metal hardware...you just wait until we get to Milan and I feel the need to post like, every single look from Burberry Prorsum. If I were ever to have the cocktail dress of my dreams custom-made, my only instructions to my collaborator would be "Gothic Fembot." Not very classic, I know, but there's a teeny-tiny part of me hidden deep down inside that yearns to be balls out (okay, really bad expression in this context but oh well), ultra-severe, super-sexy all the time. Like Gwyneth Paltrow's wardrobe recently, all black dresses so short that they shouldn't even rightly be called dresses, and stratospheric high heels? Makes me giddy and positively emerald with envy.

So I'm rather keen on a couple of looks from Rock and Republic. The first one for being for all black (becayse I see nothing wrong with wearing all-black year-round - they call it the fashion uniform because it looks great, after all) and owing much of its interest to an assortment of textures:


And the second for featuring what could pass as a spiderweb print very very close up - weird, but cool (and if you're going to do a spat-inspired shoe, this is how you do it, Abaete):

Obi-inspired belts all over the damn place.

I love a nice belt. You may have noticed. It's just that they are endlessly versatile and the absolute easiest way to turn a mediocre outfit into a fantastically figure-flattering, chic one. So I'm super excited to see belts still going strong on the spring runways, and even more so to see riffs on the traditional. Obi-style belts have shown up in several shows already, in a couple of different incarnations - big, exuberant sashes and bows at DKNY (God-awful shoes, though...they look like hiking boot-Skechers gone horribly awry):



And refined, tasseled belts at Tibi (I'm not so hot on the yellow-black combo, though...c'est un peu bumblebee, n'est-ce pas? Or the weird, Palm Beach-y print, for that matter, but...and wait, are those spats? Good Lord...):

Modern Retro at Abaete.

I wish I could figure out how to type an e with an accent aigue in Blogger. Then I could spell Abaete correctly, and also my own first name.


That said, I am simply smitten with the corset-referencing colorblocking on the simple sheath above, and the supershort, ultra-full skirted shirtdress below (also note the pattern, which is not just plaid as it appears at first glance, but something more geometric and chevron inspired). So pretty, so different, but still very classic.

Classic Comfort.

Ah, Mondays. It's hard enough to face the start of the new workweek when you didn't feel the need to accompany last night's new episode of Mad Men with a dirty vodka martini and one of the Virginia Slims Luxury Lights a friend left at your apartment a year ago because you were the only person present at the time who was immune to the urge to smoke (except, as it turns out, when watching Mad Men). Er, um, hypothetically.

I rotated my spring/summer wardrobe with my fall/winter one yesterday (and I deserved that drink for it, let me tell you) and as a result am absolutely dying to bring out several of my cold-weather favorites, but the weather outside is still summery and gorgeous and entirely ill suited to wool and velvet. For shame.

Instead of dressing for the season and not the weather, which I have been known to do because I am sometimes an obstinate and ridiculous human being, I decided to go with a simple gray cotton tank dress, a cropped knit cardigan, and black leather and cork wedges. The dress is basically a tee shirt dress, but the self-belt keeps the shape streamlined, and adding the cardigan adds a bit of visual interest.

Dress - James Perse
Cardigan - some random junior brand from AJ Wright (perish the thought that I am a total label whore!)
Wedges - Cole Haan